This editorial cartoon yesterday in Boston’s faulty local tabloid went all in on the latest fever-swamp conspiracy mongering among right-wingnuts .
Not to get technical about it, but a) it wasn’t the Clinton campaign behind any monitoring, b) there was no spying on Trump, because c) whatever monitoring did (or did not) happen occurred when Barack Obama occupied the White House.
On Saturday night former President Donald Trump declared that he was the victim of a scandal “far greater” than Watergate. He called for criminal prosecutions and “reparations.” He said “in a stronger period of time in our country, this crime would have been punishable by death.”
Trump’s statement made no sense – except to the Fox audience base that badly wants it to be true.
Four days later, Trump-aligned media outlets are still amplifying his bogus message far and wide and ranting about the circumstances of his 2016 election win over Hillary Clinton. Tuesday’s cover of the New York Post portrayed “HILLARY THE SPY.” The Wall Street Journal editorial page said “Trump really was spied on.” Fox hosts have called it a “bombshell” dozens of times.
One of those Fox News hosts, Jesse Watters, got fact-checked by PolitiFact, which arrived at this conclusion: “Durham’s filing never alleged what Watters falsely claimed: that Clinton paid hackers to spy on Donald Trump before and during his presidency, break into his computers, and then fraudulently frame him for colluding with Russia.”
But, as the Heraldniks might say, never let facts get in the way of a good cartoon.
The Boston Herald is so far in the tank for Donald Trump these days, its editors should be wearing scuba gear.
Exhibit Umpteen: Today’s edition of the flunky local tabloid, starting with Page One.
(To be fair graf goes here)
To be fair, there’s nothing really wrong with the report headlined “Trump visits LA’s beleaguered bayou.” But right alongside it is a piece by Trumpkin Adriana Cohen that’s just knee-buckling in its simple-minded sycophancy.
Who needs Hill, Obama? The Donald to the rescue
The catastrophic flooding in Louisiana is now being called the worst natural disaster in the U.S. since Superstorm Sandy.
Yet with callous indifference to those suffering, Hillary Clinton and President Obama are missing in action. Clinton has come up with lame excuses why she’s a no-show. And Obama is working on his golf swing with millionaires, billionaires and celebrities on Martha’s Vineyard.
Who needs them.
Donald Trump showed the country who’s boss yesterday by flying to Louisiana to comfort those affected by the catastrophic flooding.
Cohen proceeds to gush over Trump’s “mission of mercy,” proclaiming that “Trump showed voters that in a time of disaster and calamity, he’s not an Ivory Tower guy. He shows up and rolls up his sleeves.”
Right. For about 49 seconds.
From the occasionally readable Tommy Christopher at Mediaite:
On Friday morning, freshly-minted Donald Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway told ABC News that Trump and running mate Mike Pence would be traveling to Baton Rouge, Louisiana to “help people on the ground” in a “decidedly nonpolitical event” with “no press allowed.”
As it turns out, though, there actually were members of the press allowed, and the candidate did use the occasion to attack his political opponent, and there were opportunities for photographs, but true to his word, Trump did “help out.” Pool cameras trailed Trump for his entire visit, and over the course of those several hours, Trump “helped out” by unloading a truckload of toys for 49 seconds.
Here you go:
The flood victims of Louisiana should absolutely get all the help America can give them. But from the evidence in the chumpy local tabloid, the Heraldniks should get themselves some help as well.
As our kissin’ cousins at Campaign Outsider have noted, virtually every ad campaign for Legal Sea Foods over the past several years has been equal parts puerile and unfunny. But the current Berkowitz for President effort stands out for its excessively bad taste.
Back in March, there was this ad that drew protests from numerous quarters.
Last week the big guffaws came from the size of Donald Trump’s hands. Now comes this full-page ad in today’s Boston dailies.
Note that once again the Boston Herald has marked this “Advertisement,” and once again the Globe has not. Who ever imagined the thirsty local tabloid would be more fastidious than the $tately local broadsheet?
Regardless, Roger Berkowitz is getting hustled by his fancy-pants New York ad agency, DeVito/Verdi. In this case, he’s the fish.
Interesting Page One compare ‘n’ contrast in the local dailies about yesterday’s Grill on the Hill.
Looks like the Boston Globe and Boston Herald saw two different Congressional hearings yesterday. Also different: the feisty local tabloid has no news report on the kabuki that took place during the proceedings of the House Selective Reality Committee on Benghazi.
If you’re keeping score at home, that’s two columns – one by Kimberly Atkins, the other from Adriana Cohen – and one analysis piece from Chris Cassidy. Oh, yes – and an editorial headlined “Hillary’s blame game.”
(To be fair graf goes here)
To be fair, the Herald is not exactly Boston’s paper of record. But an actual news report might have been nice.
Trump doesn’t challenge anti-Muslim questioner at event
Washington (CNN)Donald Trump came under fire Friday morning for his handling of a question at a town hall about when the U.S. can “get rid” of Muslims, for failing to take issue with that premise and an assertion that President Barack Obama is Muslim.
Trump, who has shaken off several high-profile controversies that would have ended other presidential campaigns, faced an immediate backlash from advocacy groups, and members of his own party distanced themselves from the GOP front-runner. The incident recalls Trump’s 2011 quest to challenge Obama on where he was born, which ended with Obama releasing his long-form birth certificate. It also follows a debate performance Wednesday that garnered mixed reviews for the billionaire businessman.
“We have a problem in this country. It’s called Muslims,” an unidentified man who spoke at a question-and-answer town hall event in Rochester, New Hampshire asked the mogul at a rally Thursday night. “You know our current president is one. You know he’s not even an American.”
A seemingly bewildered Trump interrupted the man, chuckling, “We need this question. This is the first question.”
ROCHESTER, N.H. — Republican front-runner Donald Trump predicted that Carly Fiorina’s track record at both Hewlett-Packard and Lucent Technologies will eventually derail her White House hopes, during a town hall meeting here last night — signaling with repeated broadsides that the surging former executive might now pose his biggest threat.
“With Carly, she did a terrible job at Lucent,” Trump said. “She did a terrible, terrible, terrible job at Hewlett-Packard. Terrible job. Stories have been written that are legendary. … People are going to have to read this. I just don’t see how she can get over that hurdle.
“And then everyone says she made a good speech,” Trump added of Fiorina’s performance at Wednesday night’s GOP showdown. “I don’t get it. I don’t get it. I don’t get it. But at some point, people are going to see, and I think it’s going to be a pretty big roadblock for her.”
He doesn’t get it? No kidding.
Then again, the Herald didn’t get it either. It also had no menton of Trump’s Muslim moment.
Crosstown, the feisty local tabloid at least has its own piece by Chris Cassidy.
Hillary slams Trump for allowing ‘hateful’ rhetoric
PLYMOUTH, N.H. — Hillary Clinton blasted billionaire real-estate mogul Donald Trump and tried to strike a more personal tone while rallying local Democrats last night, attempting to jump-start her stalled campaign as she is set to appear at the state’s party convention today.
Clinton slammed Trump yesterday for failing to refute a town-hall attendee’s assertion on Thursday night that President Obama is “not even an American” and that Muslims are “a problem in this country.”
(To be fair graf goes here)
To be fair, the Globe does have this piece up on its website.
(First in what we expect will be a long-running series)
It’s gonna be like this every time Hillary Clinton (D-Chelsea) goes to New Hampshire.
Boston Globe:
From the piece by Annie Linskey and James Pindell:
During a stop at Whitney Brothers, a furniture company in Keene, [Clinton] laid out a tax reform philosophy that would differentiate between businesses like that one and those that “are just playing back and forth in the global marketplace to get one tenth of one percent of advantage” and were “at the root of some of the economic problems that we all remember from 2008.”
She also cast herself as a defender of Social Security and tried to demonstrate that she shares common cause with factory workers struggling to get by.
Uh-huh.
Crosstown at the Boston Herald, Clinton’s definitely no woman of the people.
From the piece by Matt Stout and Prisca Pointdujour:
Clinton came [to Keene] for her first stop in the Granite State since announcing her 2016 Oval Office campaign. The former U.S. secretary of state toured Whitney Brothers, a family-owned children’s furniture business, and huddled with employees for a much-publicized roundtable — but never pressed the flesh with several dozen people huddled outside.
Most of the ignored backers were also young — a key demographic for the former first lady.
Also no doubt struggling to get by. Or at least get acknowledged.
Just for good measure, Herald columnist Joe Battenfeld piled on:
Listen up, voters: Hilary doesn’t have time for you
So it looks like Hillary Clinton’s idea of a “listening” tour is strictly invitation only.
Just ask the good people of Keene, N.H., a liberal hamlet where a half-dozen workers at a business hand-picked by Clinton’s campaign made the cut. But dozens of unscreened voters standing outside in the rain? Sorry, Hillary won’t be “listening” to you.
And voters better get used to it, because Clinton can pretty much do whatever she wants until next fall. Who’s going to protest, her Democratic primary rivals? There aren’t any. The media? Most are in the tank.
Not the Herald, though. In all matters Clinton, the feisty local tabloid is the tank.
The local dailies are giving a whole new meaning to the Warren Report.
Yesterday’s Boston Globe was a Love Letter to Liz (actually a mash note, not to get technical about it). The paper devoted over 25% of its Ideas section to making a Warren for President case, starting with this rare front-page editorial.
Democrats need Elizabeth Warren’s voice in 2016 presidential race
DEMOCRATS WOULD be making a big mistake if they let Hillary Clinton coast to the presidential nomination without real opposition, and, as a national leader, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren can make sure that doesn’t happen. While Warren has repeatedly vowed that she won’t run for president herself, she ought to reconsider. And if Warren sticks to her refusal, she should make it her responsibility to help recruit candidates to provide voters with a vigorous debate on her signature cause, reducing income inequality, over the next year.
There are three – count ’em, three – other pieces playing variations on that theme in this high-priced spread:
That’s a lotta real estate for Warren to gobble up.
Not to be left home from the dance, the Boston Herald jumped on the Lizwagon today.
WASHINGTON — Elizabeth Warren, as we now know her, would make a terrible presidential candidate. But her party, the Democrats — including presumptive nominee Hillary Clinton — need Elizabeth Warren to run.
Because they need a primary, and no one else can give them one.
Starting today, all good progressives should write it on their Starbucks latte cups:
Run Liz Run.
And don’t stop there. Facebook profile pics, Twitter avatars, the dirty windows of your Priuses, Subarus and Range Rovers — even the Burberry sweater your Maltese named “Chloe” wears — take a Sharpie to that Shar-Pei and scrawl “Run Liz Run.”
A severe case of Clinton Derangement Syndrome has flared up once again at the frothing local tabloid. This latest pooh-pooh platter features a refried interview, a retread ranter, a syndicated drone, and a quick-draw artist. Nice bridge group, eh?
Yes, that’s the same Andrew Card the Herald announced it’s partnering up with for New Hampshire 2016 presidential coverage. Cozy, yeah?
Moving on, the Herald pulls former contributor Michael Graham out of mothballs to add his two cents.
This is why Hillary gives me a headache
I’ve made a lot of money off the Clintons. My first week as a radio talk host was the same week the world learned the name Monica Lewinsky. All I had to do was say “Bill Clinton” into the mic and my phone lines exploded. My career was launched.
At the end of his presidency, I published a book titled, “Clinton and Me: How Eight Years of a Pants-Free President Changed My Nation, My Family And My Life.” It sold a lot of copies.
So I’m not a Clinton hater per se. But I do know what “is” means. I know how sex works. And I know how to send an email. And these facts make it very difficult to believe anything coming out of the Clintons’ mouths.
And etc.
Next up: Jonah Goldberg, a man who sets the bar for syndication limbo-low.
Email flap pushes Clinton off pedestal
In the wake of Hillary Rodham Clinton’s fairly disastrous press conference at the United Nations on Tuesday, there’s only one conclusion shared by all parties: This was not how it was supposed to go.
This was supposed to be the month Clinton led with her chief selling point: her gender. She had put together a whole “I Am Woman, Hear Me Bore” speaking tour in which women’s issues — particularly the women’s issues that poll well among women who care a lot about women’s issues — would be the main subject.
The Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton Foundation unveiled a big foofaraw over Hillary’s “No Ceilings” campaign. What a wonderfully convenient theme for Mrs. Clinton’s massive and mysterious foundation, given that smashing the “highest glass ceiling” — i.e., the presidency — is the central rationale of her planned presidential bid.
As the hardworking staff duly noted, the Run Warren Run crowd ran ads in New Hampshire papers the other day promoting a rally to urge U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Sort of No) to enter the 2016 presidential bakeoff.
MANCHESTER, N.H. – They gripped signs and took T-shirts with the words “Run Warren Run,” but the 50 Democratic activists who attended the New Hampshire kick-off of an organization hoping to persuade Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren to run for president came for different reasons.
Some had already publicly committed to Hillary Clinton, should she run again for president, but want Clinton to adopt a more populist message. Others said they like it when Warren speaks out on issues like income inequality but want to learn more about her personally before backing her as a presidential candidate. A handful were interested in a potential presidential bid from Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont but wonder whether he is the best person to push a progressive message.
So . . . whatever.
But crosstown at the Boston Herald, the crowd was much larger.
Hope was a recurring theme at the launch rally yesterday, hosted by Democracy for America and MoveOn.org, which have promised to invest $1.25 million in Iowa and New Hampshire to convince Warren to run for president. About 250,000 people have signed a petition asking Warren to run, even though she has repeatedly said she isn’t jumping into the race.
About 125 people attended, organizers said, many donning free red, white and blue T-shirts decorated with the “Run Warren Run” logo. Sixteen locals signed up to host house parties to spread the word and convince more people to join the cause.
To recap:
A crowd roughly the size of a) The Kardashians, or b) Mitt Romney’s grandchildren showed up for Lizorama.
U.S. Rep. Joseph P. Kennedy III said yesterday that “companies clearly create jobs,” putting distance between himself and potential presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, whose controversial comments on the subject are expected to be fodder for Republicans this upcoming election cycle.
One of the Bay State’s rising political stars, Kennedy said in a Herald interview yesterday that Congress needs to embrace policies geared toward economic equality as it prepares to return next month under Republican control. But he said helping businesses, big and small, to “flourish” needs to remain part of that, as Democrats — increasingly galvanized by the populist bullhorn wielded by U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren — try to beat back criticism that they’re anti-business.
We-think-she’s-nuts graf:
Republicans once galvanized by President Obama’s “You didn’t build that” comment in 2012 were re-energized in late October when Clinton sent shock waves through the Twittersphere when she told Democrats in Boston, “Don’t let anybody tell you it’s corporations and businesses that create jobs.”
(Columnist Joe Battenfeld piles on with this piece, in which he speculates that Joe K 3.0 “may help derail Clinton’s White House path by endorsing her potential 2016 opponent, U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, much the same way the late U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy backed Barack Obama in 2008.”)
The problem with this Hill-steria on the Herald’s part is that it conveniently overlooks this:
Yeah – that was Elizabeth Warren two years ago, not two months ago like Clinton. So you could say Warren was the Granny of that particular sentiment.
But the Herald wouldn’t say that. Doesn’t fit their storyline, does it?
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